COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS: The impact of connections

We all make connections each and every day. The impact of those connections can be as small as a return smile from a stranger on the street, or as big as a football tackle, a connection that can bring an entire stadium to its feet.

Recently, I hired a young man by the name of Osvaldo to serve as a recreation leader in our after school programs. Osvaldo came from an impoverished and gang-infested neighborhood in Los Angeles. He told me that he watched a lot of people around him lose their lives to the gang culture, and moved to Humboldt County to get as far away from that lifestyle as he could.

Osvaldo had a unique positive energy about him, and an impressive history working with youth. About an hour after I hired him, he returned with a friend named Chris, who was also looking for work. While this didn't surprise me, as it's common for us to get referrals from recreation leaders, what did strike me as interesting was that Chris not only possessed the same unique energy as Osvaldo, but shared an identical work history.

My skepticism turned into excitement, when I discovered the storied history between these two young men.

While Osvaldo and Chris played football on the same team at Humboldt State University, it was a class project that ignited their friendship. That project turned into what would become a Wednesday evening ritual, where they would get together to do homework, play some video games, and have in-depth conversations about their lives and plans for the future.

Those conversations revealed that while Chris didn't grow up immersed in gang activity like Osvaldo, his childhood was affected by poverty. They discovered that this commonality drove them to succeed, and inspired them to want to make a positive impact on the world around them.

"When you meet somebody who has the same line of thinking as you, it's an incredible thing," Chris said. "The friendship got me excited, we motivated and inspired each other, where every move we made was met with the thought process of 'how great can we make this?'"

Before long, the guys became roommates, and then both volunteered at the juvenile hall, where they put their drive and passion into action by mentoring incarcerated youth.

The two went on to take an adaptive physical education class together, and had the opportunity to put on a Special Olympics event. This experience had such an impact on them that they both made the decision to pursue a teaching credential in adaptive physical education.

Chris and Osvaldo pushed each other to see their goal of graduating college, and are both anxiously waiting to hear back if they've been accepted into the credential program.

In the meantime, they continue to be inseparable; in addition to the newly shared position of recreation leader, the two share a roof, clothes and even an evening job where they work security for special events at the Arcata Theater Lounge.

"Our friendship is one based on unconditional love," Chris says. "There isn't anything about it that takes away from the other person, it only adds."

Even their long-term dreams hold a place for each other, as they hope to teach and coach football in the same area, if not in the same school.

They even talk of opening a business, and owning property together. They have committed themselves to staying motivated, and holding each other accountable for these goals.

"We learned to never stop moving on the football field, otherwise you're gonna get hit," Osvaldo said, "and we apply that mentality to everything in life: Our goal is to always stay on top of our game, try our hardest, and be better than we were yesterday."

Osvaldo and Chris made a connection that has not only impacted their lives in a positive way, but has inspired actions that have positively impacted an entire community.

We all make connections each and every day. Some days it's as simple as a smile, and some days, if we're lucky, we get hit by a football tackle.